Understanding this pillar
What this pillar measures
The money pillar: a broad measure of readily spendable balances and closely related savings, not a measure of national wealth.
M2 combines M1 with small-denomination time deposits and retail money-market fund balances, subject to the Federal Reserve’s definitions. M1 includes currency and transaction-related balances. This chart uses the monthly, seasonally adjusted M2SL series, converting billions of dollars into dollars.
How to read the chart
The line shows the level of the money stock. Growth over a chosen interval is (ending M2 ÷ starting M2 − 1) × 100. A large dollar change can represent a modest percentage change when the starting balance is large.
Illustration: an M2 observation of 23,000 billion means $23 trillion. A subsequent 23,230 billion is a 1% increase, not a 230% increase.
What moves this measure
Changes in deposits and the other included balances affect M2.
Definitions, seasonal adjustment, and revisions matter when comparing observations over long periods.
What it does not tell you
M2 is not just newly printed currency and does not include every financial asset.
Money growth alone does not establish a one-for-one change in consumer prices; spending, output, credit conditions, and money demand also matter.
When the numbers change
The Federal Reserve publishes monthly observations. These are monthly averages, not precise end-of-month balances. The dashboard and chart show the latest collected source observation without extrapolating a current total.
Can money supply shrink?
Yes. The component balances can decline. The reported history preserves those decreases rather than assuming money supply always grows.
Sources and methodology
Uses FRED M2SL, which is reported in billions of dollars, and multiplies each observation by one billion.